The Detroit Pistons will take on the Toronto Raptors tonight on the road, with both teams looking to snap losing streaks.
The Pistons have lost four straight to maintain their stranglehold on the worst record in the NBA, while the Raptors have lost two in a row and are barely clinging to a play-in spot.
Detroit doesn’t have much to play for these days except for lottery position, as even their player development has been thwarted by myriad injuries.
Toronto is at a crossroads, as they have been disappointing this season and failing to make the play-in tournament could cause them to make some drastic moves this offseason.
The Pistons and Raptors have had some kind of rivalry since Dwane Casey was fired from Toronto and hired by Detroit, but it has been lopsided for one team or the other.
Detroit beat Toronto six straight times coming into this season, but has lost all three of their matchups in this one, helping the Raptors to pad their win total in the Eastern Conference.
Even though it could cost them slightly, the Pistons would love to play spoiler to their old foe tonight.
Detroit Pistons vs. Toronto Raptors
Toronto has won three straight against Detroit this season and is currently sitting in 9th position in the East, but barely.
They are just a half game ahead of the Bulls and just two games ahead of the Pacers, who would love a late surge to get into the play-in tournament.
Losing to the lowly Pistons would put Toronto’s play-in bid in peril, as they have a brutal stretch to close out the season that includes games against Miami, Philly, Boston (x2) and Milwaukee to go along with Detroit, Washington and Charlotte.
Of course, a win could be somewhat costly for the Pistons as they try to close out the season with the league’s worst record and ensure that they can fall no further than 5th in the upcoming 2023 NBA Draft.
But with a two game buffer between the Pistons and Rockets, Detroit can afford a couple of more wins without too much risk, so it would be nice to play spoiler to Toronto’s chances and get a win tonight on the road against Dwane Casey’s old team.